The countdown to Borscht begins now and ends Dec. 12, 2012. Borscht's fest runs through Dec. 21. So yes, Christmas just came early. Tickets and further announcements will come next week, according to @borschtcorp.

Ciara LaVelle is New Times' arts and culture editor. She earned her BS in journalism at Boston University, moved to Florida in 2004, and landed a job as a travel writer. For reasons that seemed sound at the time, she gave up her life of professional island-hopping to join New Times' staff in 2011. She left the paper in 2014 to start a family, but two years and two babies later, she returned in the hopes that someone on staff would agree to babysit. No takers yet.